The Trials of November

Chapter Nine

Several days passed without any sighting of the strange man. The lake was still freezing, but not yet frozen, and all of the birds had long since headed south. Grand Haven was just as beautiful and cold as always. In the mornings, beautiful frost designs would cover the windows, only to melt when the sun would come up.
Things were normal between Victoria and Ben. They were still amazing together and they still clicked like it was the first time they had met. There was a light blanket of snow on the ground and there was soon to be ice on Lake Michigan. It was late November and everything seemed to be right in the world. Alas, everything was not as it seemed.
One very late and very cold night, Victoria was getting ready for bed. She was putting on her pajamas when she heard a noise from downstairs. It was the noise of something being tipped over, then a crash.
She froze right in her tracks, unable to move, and looked around for a weapon. Suddenly, there was another crash, which caused Victoria to animate. She rushed to the wall and shut off her lights. She then pressed herself behind her bedroom door, too afraid to budge any more. Victoria pulled the door as close to her as she could, so it would not look like there was someone hiding behind it. She did not let out a single audible breath the entire time.
She sat there for at least ten or twenty minutes, with no other noises from downstairs. Not a peep. She shut, locked, and then barricaded her door, and even then, she could not get any sleep. Victoria could not go downstairs to see if someone was actually breaking in, or if it was only her imagination. She tossed and turned all night, quietly listening for any other sounds.
Victoria was laying there for hours in silence, trying to convince herself that it was a mouse, or the wind shifting things outside, or even just the house settling, but she had a feeling in her gut that none of those were the real culprit of the crash noise that she had heard.
The next afternoon, Victoria met Ben at the Screamin' Bean. They each got a green tea, and Ben could tell that something was wrong with his girlfriend. She had wrinkles on her beautiful forehead, and she had bags under her eyes. Seeing her like that made Ben sad. He did not want to find out that she was in pain, because if she was in pain, then it would make him be in pain also.
"Babe. What's wrong?" Ben asked, obviously concerned. Victoria did not want to keep it from him, so she decided to let him know.
"I thought I heard a noise in my house last night." Victoria said, stirring her tea. She was refusing to make eye contact with Ben, which dramatically increased his concern for her. Ben then got some concerned wrinkles on his forehead, and he put his hand on Victoria's arm.
"Well it was cold last night. It could have just been the house settling." Ben said, shrugging it off. She spent the night alone every night and he was surprised that she hadn't thought that there were noises before.
They spent the rest of the afternoon together, even though it was getting very cold very quickly. Victoria held Ben's hand like it was the only hand she ever wanted or needed to hold, and she cherished every moment that she spent out of the cold air and in his warm embrace.
Ben walked Victoria home that night, and gave her a kiss on the forehead outside of her house.
"If you think that you hear something again tonight, please call me." Ben said. "I will come right over." Victoria knew that Ben cared for her so much, and she appreciated it. When she was with him, she felt very safe.
There was a gust of wind, which blew Victoria's hair. Ben admired her, and thought about how beautiful and wonderful and perfect his girlfriend is. He kept thinking about how lucky he was to have her.
"I will." Victoria said. "Thank you so much." And that was when she said something that she had never said to anyone before. She knew, however, that she absolutely meant it. "I love you."
She never felt like she needed to say that to anyone else before, but after she said it, she knew that it was the right thing to say, and that she totally meant it. She loved him, and she was not afraid for him to know.
Ben gasped softly. He was obviously surprised. He looked at Victoria like she was a piece of art. Like a beautiful masterpiece that nobody could possibly put a price on. He smiled at her. He felt so lucky to have her, and she felt so lucky to have him. The wind was not even a problem anymore. The two turned their backs to it, proving that the cold was no match for their love.
"I love you too." Ben whispered back at her. He then hugged her close into his chest. She squeezed him back. Victoria pressed her face into Ben's chest, smelling him. She loved how he smelled.
Victoria could not believe that she had said that. However, she did not regret it at all. She was so thankful for Ben.
Suddenly, Ben ran his strong hands through Victoria's hair. He then pulled Victoria closer to him, so that they were face to face. They looked into each other's eyes, and the intimacy was obvious.
Ben then pulled Victoria in further, the last few inches, so that they were breathing the same air. Victoria was caught off guard entirely, and she let out a tiny gasp as their faces neared.
As soon as their lips touched, it felt as though everything was perfect. Everything was beautiful. It felt as though neither of them could possibly be harmed ever again. There were a million invisible fireworks lighting up the night sky, and there were thousands of soundless orchestras sending beautiful music through the air. There were no other people in the entire world except for the two of them.
Victoria grabbed Ben's neck, pulling him in tighter. It was their first kiss, and it was the best one that either of them had ever had, or ever would have.
As soon as their lips disconnected, they both had an intense longing for more.
Both of them were speechless. They just stood there, looking into each other's eyes for the longest time. Victoria smiled, and Ben smiled.
Ben then pulled Victoria in for another hug. They sat there for a few minutes, just holding each other. It was cold, but the cold was not getting to them at all. They sat there, completely in love, and completely happy.
"Okay." Ben said, pulling away softly. "I am going to let you go in now." He smiled as though he was unsure of himself. They both had felt the same way about the kiss. They were both completely in awe of the other person. It was beautiful. "Please be safe, okay?"
Victoria nodded with a smile, and slowly walked in her house, looking back at Ben three different times before she went inside. Once the door was closed behind her, she leaned against it with a huge grin. She could not believe that she was so lucky. She loved him. She. Loved. Ben.
And that kiss. That beautiful, amazing, special, magical kiss. Victoria could not stop thinking about him. He was the only thing going through her mind, and she knew she would be thinking about it for a very long time. Every time she thought about it, a chill ran through her body, and a smile crossed her face. Victoria danced around her room, which was something that she had not done since she was little. But she did not care. She wanted to dance, so she danced.
Getting ready for bed that night took hardly any effort, and falling asleep took even less. All she had to do was think of Ben and then relaxing was made simple and effortless. As soon as she closed her eyes, she felt herself drift off. Then, that whole night, she dreamed of him. She dreamed of their future and of everything that would come with it, and she was completely content and happy.
It was four in the morning on that particularly chilly day, and Victoria woke with a start. She felt as though someone was in her room with her. Her parents were gone for another work trip so that made her very nervous. She sat up and looked around in her dark room, but saw nobody. She couldn't shake the feeling, though, that she was not alone. She shook her head, blaming the feeling on her being paranoid. Victoria swung her legs over her bed and groggily headed to the bathroom.
She looked at herself in the mirror and then headed back to her room. When she got back, she turned on the light to make sure nobody was there. Everything seemed to be in order. Her books were all in the right place, and her clothes were still scattered on the floor like they were when she went to sleep earlier. But there was one thing that was very very different than when she had left for the bathroom. Her window was open. She stopped dead in her tracks. Victoria ran over to the window and shut and locked it searching the street for a person, but saw no one. She then whirled around to make sure that nobody resided in there with her, and based on her extensive investigation, nobody did.
She then decided that she would go back to bed. She got in her bed, but before she could lie down, she noticed a note on her pillow. It read:
"Dearest Victoria,
I know that you do not know me, and I do not expect you to know me. But I am the man who you met at the diner the other night. I can not stop thinking about you. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Of course, your friend is beautiful too. I guess that it is true when they say that similar people hang out together. So anyways, I saw you the other day with your boyfriend, even though you told me that you did not have a boyfriend. Don't worry. I will forgive you this time. But I promise that you will be seeing much more of me in the near future. Don't be afraid. I am not going to hurt you. Or your boyfriend. Yet.
XX
--David"
Victoria's heart sank into her stomach. She felt as though she was going to be sick. Her eyes started to water and her chest started hurting. It was the kind of pain that took away your breath and made you want to curl up on the ground in pain.
Victoria was so shocked, and she was not sure how to handle what had just happened to her. She grabbed her phone and ran to the bathroom. She locked the door and sat in the tub.
How did he know where she lived? Who even was he? What did he want with her? Why break in only to leave a note? And that one thing that he said "your friend is beautiful too." Was he talking about Rebecca? He definitely could be, but, of course, Victoria's mind instantly went to Callie. He knows Callie? What was going on? How could that be? Her mind was running crazy.
She sat down in the tub, suddenly feeling very dizzy and faint. She covered her face with her hands and closed her eyes tightly, trying to convince herself that it was not real, or that everything would be okay.
She was panicking, and she felt an anxiety attack coming on. She pushed against the sides of the bathtub, suddenly feeling very claustrophobic. She felt a little bit sick, and she put her head between her legs, trying to get rid of the nausea. It did not work, and she closed her eyes.
Victoria leaned back and looked at the ceiling. Her mind was going crazy. What if he is still in my house? She kept thinking to herself. Victoria was not strong by any means, and she knew that she would never be able to fend off a fully grown man, especially one with a weapon.
She got up and began pacing. Victoria used for something that she could use as a weapon, finding nothing but a bottle of shampoo and a hairbrush. She checked to make sure that the door was still locked, and her pacing became more frantic.
How could this possibly have happened? How did he get in? Did he just use the window to escape or did he crawl up the side of her house to get in through the window? She rested her hands on the sink and put her head down, realizing that she was breathing very heavily. She did not know what else to do. She did not know what else she could do. Her brain was exploding with all of the thoughts running through it.
Victoria then went in to a major panic mode, and she needed Ben.
It was three in the morning, but she called him anyway, praying he would answer. It rang six times before an answer. Victoria breathed a sigh of relief.
"... Hello?" A tired Ben answered the phone. Victoria then felt immense guilt for waking him, but she knew that he would definitely have scolded her if she hadn't. Victoria's panic increased with every word she spoke.
"Someone was here. He knew Callie. He broke in here and he left me a note and--"
"What?" Ben asked, still waking up. "Are you okay?" He asked, and Victoria could tell that Ben was also beginning to panic. His soft voice was becoming more shaky. The voice that once calmed her suddenly was the one in need of some calming.
"I am okay but I need you to come here." Victoria said. She was on the verge of tears and her voice had a quiver to it.
Victoria did not like asking people for favors. In fact, she had an absolute loathing for it. She did not like how it showed weakness. Victoria hated being a burden to those around her. All her life, people had made her feel as though she was not good enough, and she felt that those feelings were based from a place of asking for favors.
She kept looking around her room in a panic, trying to find anything else that could be out of place. She could not find anything, but she could not shake the feeling of panic that was setting in. She was shaking in fear.
"Victoria, I am on my way. Please. Stay safe. Hide somewhere. I will be there soon." Ben said and he hung up the phone. Ben always looked out for her, and it was something that she appreciated very much.
Victoria ran to her closet and shut the door behind her. She fell to the ground and pushed herself back as far as she could in the corner, covering herself with sweaters and bathrobes that were on the floor. She began to cry. She stayed as quiet as a mouse, listening to every sound, and she prayed with everything in her that she had that her hero would get there soon.
The darkness of her closet was blinding, and the silence was deafening. She kept looking around, making sure that she was alone in her closet. Her pain and fear was totally consuming her. Victoria was paralyzed with fear.
She sat in that corner and cried for what felt like hours, though it could not have been more than a few minutes. She heard a rustling downstairs and she felt the blood drain from her face. Her vision started to tunnel and she cowered in the corner, wishing she could turn into a insect, too small for anyone to see. Suddenly her bedroom door opened, and she heard someone walking around slowly. She heard the rustling of papers on her desk and the sheets on her bed. The man was back. He was there for her. She could not breathe.